Murray and Bun: Murray the Ghosthunter

So far in this superb illustrated series, Murray and his friend Bun have hopped through the cat flap, accidentally magicked by inept Wizard Fumblethumb, much as he accidentally turned an iced bun into Bun, to find themselves in a world of Vikings, knights and pirates. Now they’re tasked with helping jolly stately home owners Daphne and Geoffrey Hogchester locate their ghost, who has gone missing. This is all much scarier than Murray would like, but he knows that he’s got courage in him somewhere. After various very funny missteps, they find the ghost, with the help of special ghost goggles that, in a clever gimmick, can be used by readers too. All ends happily and comfortably, the latter being Murray’s speciality. The story is full of incident and fun, and the relationship between cautious Murray and irrepressibly optimistic Bun, beautifully expressed in Adam Stower’s illustrations, makes this an absolute joy to read.